USA: Driving bans for combustion vehicles as early as 2026
The USA wants to drastically reduce its greenhouse gas emissions. One step in this direction is the new regulations on petrol consumption of cars. From 2026 onwards, car manufacturers must set up their vehicle fleets in such a way that the vehicles can cover an average of almost 90 kilometres on just under four litres of petrol. But now this target is on the brink of collapse.
It was only in April that Biden reversed Trump's relaxed requirements for the automotive industry. Biden has an ambitious plan: by 2030, 50 percent of all new cars should be fully electric or plug-in hybrids. The US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) welcomes this step, which could save three billion tonnes of pollutants by 2050. In total, according to the agency, the measure could save the equivalent of up to 170 billion euros in follow-up costs, as people will fall ill less frequently, air pollution will decrease and refuelling costs will fall.
The plan is ambitious because in the first half of 2021 only 3.1 per cent of cars met these requirements. By 2026, it could be 17 percent in the USA, according to the EPA's calculations. By comparison, the figure in Germany is already 22.5 per cent.
Last weekend, the president's electric plans received a severe setback when a fellow West Virginian opposed the president's climate package and announced that he would not vote to spend billions on climate protection. Piquantly, West Virginia is one of the largest coal producers in the country.
If Biden cannot implement his climate plan, the planned bonus payments for the purchase of clean electric and hybrid models will also be in jeopardy and thus, of course, the goal of having 50 per cent electric cars on the roads by 2030. Another way to achieve the goal would be the introduction of environmental zones and the banning of old combustion cars.
As in Germany, the success of the climate efforts depends to a large extent on the political guidelines and the acceptance of the population. If the bonus payments are abolished, this will have direct consequences for the climate.